Spring-loaded, locking hinge fin assembly



- Nov. 4, 1958 D. E. STARTZELL 2,858,765

SPRING-LOADED, LOCKING HINGE FIN ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. '7, 1956 2Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR D. E. STARTZELL TIORNEY Nov. 4, 1958 D. E.STARTZELL 2,353,765

SPRING-LOADED, LOCKING HINGE FIN ASSEMBLY 'Filed Aug; '7, 1956- 2Sheets-Sheet 2 FICA 1-10.10.

. L FIG 9 33 INVENTOR D. E. STARTZELL ORNEY United States Patent GSPRING-LOADED, LOCKING HINGE FIN ASSEMBLY Dale E. Startzell, Washington,D. (3., assignor to the United States of America as represented by theSecretary of the Navy Application August 7, 1956, Serial No. 602,674

1 Claim. (Cl. 102-50 (Granted under Title 35, U. 5. Code (1952), see.266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by orfor the Government of the United States of America for governmentalpurposes without the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.

The present invention relates to an ordnance missile and moreparticularly to a new and improved collapsible stabilizing fin assemblyfor use with an explosively propelled ordnance missile.

More especially the invention relates to a stabilizing assembly for anordnance missile having a plurality of fins pivotally mounted on themissile and releasably maintained in a closed or retracted condition bythe cylindrical wall of the gun barrel and in which means are providedfor forcibly ejecting the fins into the airstream and concurrentlytherewith locking the fins in an extended position as the missile isfired and clears the muzzle of the gun thereby to stabilize the missileas the missile travels along its trajectory.

Although the invention is described with use on gun 1 fired projectiles,for explanatory purposes, the novel fin arrangement herein disclosed hasutility in any type of propelled missiles which requiresfin-stabilization such,

for example, as rockets, guided missiles, etc. Also, the

fins need not necessarily be extended upon emergence from the gunbarrel, but may be maintained in a retracted position by any suitabletiming device or distance determining means until the missile hasattained a predeterminedpoint in its trajectory, at which point thetiming device will be effective to enable forcible extension of thefins. As an example of this delayed operation, it is well known thatsome rockets have two stages, one of which is releasably disconnectedtherefrom at some point in its trajectory. Any suitable arrangement canbe provided to extend the fins upon the occurrence of the aforedescribeddisconnection.

An object of the present invention is to provide a new and improvedcollapsible stabilizing assembly for use with an ordnance missile.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a stabilizingassembly for use with an ordnance missile explosively propelled from agun and in which the stabilizing means are forcibly ejected into theairstream as the missile clears the gun muzzle.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a stabilizingassembly for use in an ordnance missile and having a plurality ofstabilizing fins forcibly ejected into the airstream and which arelocked and maintained in an extended position thereby to stabilize themissile during the flight of the missile along its trajectory.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of the invention willbe readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood byreference to the following detailed description when considered inconnection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. l is a central longitudinal sectional view partly in section andpartly broken away illustrating the device of the present inventionattached to an explosively propelled projectile;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged elevational view of one of the fins in a retractedposition;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 with the fin in an extended lockedposition;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 55 of Fig. 3; V

Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is an exploded view in plan of a fragmentary portion of one ofthe fins and the body member;

Fig. 8 is an exploded view in elevation of the locking structure; i

Fig. 9 is an exploded view in perspective of a frag- I mentary portionof one of the fins and the body member;

Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 2 illustrating an alternativearrangement of the device of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of 11. The projectilemay be of any conventional type and comprises projectile body 12 carriedby a shell 13 in which is arranged the propellant charge 14.

As more clearly shown on Fig. 2 the body 12 has formed therein aplurality of diametrically disposed recesses 15, each recess receiving astabilizing fin 16 pivotally mounted on the body 12 by a pin 17extending through a plurality of hinge barrels 18 formed on the body 12and a plurality of complementary hinge barrels 19 formed on the fins 16.Barrels 18 are each provided with a lip or locking detent 21, andbarrels 19 are each provided with a lip or looking detent 22, theaforesaid detents being normally out of locking engagement with respectto each other when the fins 16 are within the recesses 15 and in aretracted condition as shown on Fig. 3.

A torsion compression spring 23 is disposed about each of the shafts orpins 17, one end of the spring being in engagement with the body 12, theother end thereof being in engagement with the fin 16 as more clearlyshown on Fig. 4. By this arrangement it will be understood that the finsare normally urged in an outwardly and downwardly direction by thetorsion compression spring 23 and thus as the projectile is fired andthe body 12 clears the end of the barrell 10 the fins are forcibly movedoutwardly and downwardly by the spring 23 whereupon the fins are ejectedinto the airstream and concurrently therewith the detents 21 and 22 aremoved into locking engagement with respect to each other thereby lockingthe fin in an extended and stabilizing position as more clearly shown onFigs. 4 and 6.

It will be noted, Fig. 3, that when the fins 16 are in a retractedposition the terminal ends of detents 21 and 22 are in abuttingengagement with respect to each other andthus the detents are maintainedout of alignment in an unlocked position. In this position it will beunderstood that the spring 23 is under compression and a substantialamount of torque is applied thereto. Thus when the fins are released andin response to the torsion force applied thereto by the spring the finsare rotated outwardly until the corresponding locking surfaces ondetents 21 and 22 are aligned with respect to each other whereupon thefins are moved downwardly in response to the force applied thereto bythe spring and thus detents 22 are moved into and maintained in lockingengagement with detents 21 with the fins 16 extending into theairstream.

The fins 16 may be maintained in a retracted position l atented Nov. 4,1958.

and within the recesses 15 in any suitable manner such, for example, asby a member 24 detachably arranged on the end of the body 12 and havingan annular flange 25 formed thereon in engagement with the fins. Themember 24is adapted to receive the force of the explosion as the charge14 is fired thereby to prevent'damage to the 'fin assembly, it beingunderstood, however, that when the body 12 clears the gun barrel themember 24 will fall away from the body and the fins will be actuated andlocked in an extended position in the manner heretofore set forth.

In the arrangement of Fig. 10, the body 26 is provided with a pluralityof recesses 27, each of the recesses having radially disposed planarsurfaces at the two longitudinal sides thereof and a planar surfacedisposed intermediate the side surfaces and generally perpendicular tothe radius midway between the side surfaces. Supported within eachrecess is a pair of fins 28-29, fins being pivotally mounted on the body26 by pins 31, there being a pin 31 adjacent each of the two planar sidesurfaces of the recess, respectively. The fins are provided with hingebarrels 32 similar to hinge barrels 19, the body being provided withhinge barrels 33 similar to barrels 18. It will be understood that thebarrels 3233 are each provided with lips or locking detents similar tothe locking detents on barrels 18-19 adapted to lock the fins 28-29 inan extended position. it will be further understood that in thisarrangement the pins 31 are each provided with a torsion compressionspring for actuating fins 2829 to an extended locked position when thefins are released such, for example, as by the member 24 as theprojectile clears the gun barrel or by a conventional arming wire usedin connection with an air-borne bomb, the arming wire being adaptedto-maintain the fins in a retracted position until the bomb is releasedfrom an aircraft in flight and to release the fins for actuation to anextended position as the bomb is released from an aircraft in flight.Moreover, each pin 31 is positioned adjacent its respective planar sidesurface of the recess so that the associated fin, in the extendedradially-disposed position thereof, abuts the respective side surfaceand is disposed radially of the body.

Although the invention has been described in particularity in connectionwith a projectile, it will be understood that, if desired, it may beadvantageously used with rockets, bombs and the like wherein the finsare maintained in a retracted position by any suitable releasing meansadapted to be released as the missile is launched from an aircraft inflight or from a launching rack as the case may be whereupon the finsare ejected into the airstream by the springs and locked in the extendedposition by the complementary lips or locking detents formed on each ofthe hinge barrels carried by the fins and body.

Obviously many modifications and variations of the present invention arepossible in the light of the above teachings. It is therefore to beunderstood that within the scope of the appended claim the invention maybe practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent ofthe United States is:

A stabilizing fin assembly for an ordnance missile comprising anelongated body having a plurality of pairs of diametrically-disposedlongitudinal recesses formed in the periphery thereof, each recesshaving radially-disposed planar side surfaces and an intermediate planarsurface, said intermediate planar surface being disposed generallyperpendicular to the radius midway between said side surfaces, a pair ofsets of support members disposed in each of said recesses respectively,one set of members of said pair being fixed to said body adjacent oneside surface of the respective recess and the other set of members ofsaid pair being fixed to said body adjacent the opposite side surface ofsaid recess, a plurality of hinge shafts, each of said hinge shaftsbeing carried by each set of said sets of members respectively, aplurality of pairs of flat planar fins, each of said pairs of fins beingmounted for pivotal movement on the pair of hinge shafts of each recessrespectively, one of said pair of fins being normally folded inwardlyand in contact with said intermediate planar surface, the other of saidpair of fins being normally folded inwardly and in overlapping contactwith said one fin, a spring mounted on each of said hinge shaftsrespectively, each spring being operatively connected to said body andits respective fin and exerting a torsional force tending to pivot thefin outwardly to a position in which the fin is abutting the adjacentside surface and is radially disposed, and means locking said fins insaid radially-disposed positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,890,175 Brandt Dec. 6, 1932 2,793,591 Jasse May 28, 1957 FOREIGNPATENTS 1,096,579 France Feb. 2, 1955 753,838 Great Britain Aug. 1, 1956

